undergradly.
Major · Visual & Performing Arts

Space, function, and aesthetics— a credentialed path into a competitive applied art

Interior Design prepares students to plan, design, and furnish residential and commercial spaces using artistic principles, technical drafting, building codes, and material knowledge. About 4,272 degrees are awarded annually across 254 colleges, with programs available at both the associate's and bachelor's level. The most direct career destination, interior designer, has a median wage of $63,490.

Schools offering
254
Annual completions
4,272
Typical degree level
Associate's + Bachelor's
Median earnings (5yr)
$49k

About this major

Interior design as a formal academic discipline combines applied visual art with technical and regulatory knowledge. The curriculum moves through space planning, color theory, furniture and textile selection, and period style history on one side, and drafting, CAD, architectural lighting, acoustics, systems integration, and building codes on the other. The CIP definition captures that breadth: it explicitly includes computer applications, graphic techniques, interior lighting, acoustics, color coordination, basic structural design, and building code compliance — meaning programs are expected to develop both aesthetic judgment and technical competence. Most programs involve sustained studio project work simulating residential and commercial contexts, including offices, hotels, restaurants, and housing, with portfolio development as a consistent throughline.

The major sits at an applied rather than purely expressive point on the arts spectrum. It is closer to architecture in its regulatory and technical demands than to fine art, and closer to interior architecture than to decorating — a distinction the CIP definition makes explicit by cross-referencing Interior Architecture (04.0501) and Housing and Human Environments (19.0601) as adjacent fields. Students who engage well with this major tend to be comfortable with constraints: building codes, client briefs, material budgets, and spatial limitations are all part of the practice, and the curriculum reflects that.

The primary career destination is interior designer, with a median wage of $63,490 and 3.2% projected job growth. About 4,272 degrees are awarded each year across 254 colleges, ranging from community colleges and state universities to dedicated design schools like Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York — the latter alone produced 109 completions in a recent year, split between associate's and bachelor's graduates. The field is smaller in volume than adjacent design disciplines like graphic design, but more tightly mapped to a single credentialed occupation.

Section 3 · Careers

Where this major leads

Occupations most often associated with this major, from the federal BLS+O*NET crosswalk. Job-growth projections and median wages are national.

Occupation Median wage Job growth Typical education
Interior designers $63k +3.2% Bachelor's degree
Architecture teachers, postsecondary $101k +2.0% Doctoral or professional degree
Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

Median graduate earnings from the federal College Scorecard, 5 and 10 years out.

Median 5-year earnings

$49k

Associate's vs Bachelor's — early-career earnings

Associate's

$37k

Bachelor's

$53k

Who this major is for

You may thrive here if you find yourself thinking spatially — if you walk into a room and immediately read how the layout, light, and materials work together or against each other. The curriculum rewards students who can hold both aesthetic and technical problems in mind simultaneously: a space plan has to be beautiful, but it also has to meet code, fit a budget, and work for the people using it. Students who are already drawn to architecture magazines, furniture history, or material specification — not just interior decorating in the casual sense — tend to engage with the coursework more deeply. The bachelor's path in particular makes sense if you are oriented toward licensed professional practice: bachelor's completers report five-year median earnings of about $53,189 versus $37,186 for associate's completers, and many states require a bachelor's degree for NCIDQ examination eligibility.

Think twice if your primary draw is to the aesthetic-only side of interior work without interest in the technical and regulatory dimensions — building codes, systems integration, and drafting are not elective components of this major, and the NCIDQ exam that governs licensure in many states tests both. Think twice also if you are expecting the career trajectory to lead toward the architecture teacher role listed in this major's career data: that position requires a doctoral or professional degree, not a bachelor's, and reflects graduate-school outcomes rather than the typical bachelor's path. And if you're drawn more to two-dimensional visual communication than spatial and material design, graphic design or digital media design programs may fit the day-to-day work better than an interior design curriculum.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for Interior Design

Ranked by annual completions at the associate's or bachelor's level — a proxy for program scale.

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
Fashion Institute of Technology New York, NY 72 37 109
Seminole State College of Florida Sanford, FL 31 65 96
The New School New York, NY 37 39 76
Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design Lakewood, CO 0 73 73
Pratt Institute-Main Brooklyn, NY 0 64 64
Kent State University at Kent Kent, OH 0 62 62
Iowa State University Ames, IA 0 57 57
Georgia Southern University Statesboro, GA 0 56 56
Arizona State University Campus Immersion Tempe, AZ 0 53 53
San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA 0 52 52
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

Graphic Design

7,841 completions/yr

Design and Visual Communications, General

4,248 completions/yr

Illustration

2,816 completions/yr

Fashion/Apparel Design

2,778 completions/yr

Commercial and Advertising Art

1,775 completions/yr

Game and Interactive Media Design

1,685 completions/yr

Design and Applied Arts, Other

1,229 completions/yr

Industrial and Product Design

1,222 completions/yr

Considering this direction?

We've taken a hard look at the debt, earnings trajectory, and degree-level tradeoffs for the Interior Design field. Read our verdict before you commit.

Is Interior Design worth it? Read verdict
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

What do Interior Design majors actually study day-to-day?
The curriculum spans both creative and technical ground. Students spend time on space planning, color theory, material selection, and period style history alongside drafting, CAD, lighting design, and acoustics. Building codes and inspection regulations are also part of the coursework — this is not a purely aesthetic discipline. Programs typically involve project-based work simulating residential and commercial scenarios, including office, hotel, restaurant, and housing contexts. Many programs require a portfolio developed across multiple studio projects.
Do I need a bachelor's, or is an associate's enough for Interior Design?
Degree level has a measurable impact here. Bachelor's completers in Interior Design report median five-year earnings of about $53,189, while associate's completers report roughly $37,186 — a gap of around $16,000. The primary career destination, interior designer, lists a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education and has a median wage of $63,490. Some states require passing the NCIDQ (National Council for Interior Design Qualification) exam for licensure, and most states require at least a bachelor's degree for eligibility. The associate's path can work for production-level or assistant roles, but the four-year credential is the more direct route to practicing as a licensed interior designer.
What kinds of jobs do Interior Design graduates end up in?
The most direct destination is interior designer, with a median wage of $63,490 and 3.2% projected job growth — slightly below the average across all occupations. The data packet lists architecture teacher (postsecondary) as a second mapped career at $101,480, but that role requires a doctoral or professional degree, so it is not a realistic near-term outcome from a bachelor's program. Most graduates enter residential design firms, commercial design practices, architecture firms, or furniture and materials retail. Some move toward project management, set design, or related fields over time.
How competitive is the job market for Interior Design graduates?
The interior designer occupation shows 3.2% projected job growth — below the typical 4–5% average. About 4,272 degrees are awarded annually across 254 colleges, and while that is a smaller field than graphic design (7,841 completions annually), the specialist nature of the work means competition concentrates in metropolitan and high-cost-of-living markets where residential and commercial design demand is highest. Portfolio quality and regional job density both matter considerably. Students who develop strong CAD and 3D visualization skills alongside the design fundamentals tend to be more competitive in a market that increasingly expects digital deliverables.
Is Interior Design the right fit, or should I consider a related major?
Interior Design is the clearest credential path if your goal is specifically to practice interior design professionally. Within the same CIP design family, Graphic Design (7,841 completions) is the larger and more digitally broad option if you're drawn more to communication design than spatial design. Design and Visual Communications, General (4,248 completions) offers a wider applied-arts base but less direct career alignment. Architecture (cross-referenced as CIP 04.0501) is worth considering if you're drawn to structural design and willing to pursue licensure over a longer professional timeline. Housing and Human Environments (CIP 19.0601) covers some overlapping content but with more behavioral science emphasis than design practice.
What's a realistic earnings picture after an Interior Design degree?
Five-year median earnings for Interior Design graduates run about $49,297 across degree levels. Bachelor's completers specifically reach about $53,189 at that mark — in line with the interior designer occupation's $63,490 median wage for experienced practitioners. There is no 10-year earnings data in this dataset. The mapped high-earning career — architecture teacher at $101,480 — requires a doctoral degree, so it does not represent a near-term benchmark for bachelor's completers. Earnings in interior design are also market-sensitive: designers in major metro areas can exceed national medians considerably, while those in smaller markets often see lower rates.